4. How can the fight be brought to the enemy, gaining ground for the heroic motivation?
Be the PCs first:
Encounter: pursuit
Place: Hunter's Road, the next morning
Orsini, Guglio, and Sister Ysabel accompany Don Pantaloni to Hunter's Road at sunrise. Don Pantaloni warns the others that he has been quite naughty in the past, so they might not like what Ponzetti has to tell them. Orsini dismisses the disclaimer, stating cynically that love is nothing but trouble. Sister Ysabel is secretly saddened by his remark. (FYI: I started with these bits of characterization as a reminder to myself of where the PCs stood on the subject of love because I didn't know what the next Story Cube roll would turn up.)
Be the GM next:
Story Cube: treasure chest
Ponzetti awaits the group at the edge of the northern wilds. He tells them that somewhere in this uncharted region of Vitalia, he had, two weeks before, entered the secret lair of a deceased wizard, the location of which he had blackmailed out of a wealthy patrician. Inside, he hoped to find a special piece of jewelry he very much wanted. In the library of the wizard's lair, he did indeed find the ear-shaped pendant necklace he sought along with several useful potions which he began loading into a nearby open chest. However, the chest turned out to be an intelligent Mimic, and Ponzetti broke one of the potions on it when he was startled by the monster's attack. The potion was a powerful elixir of love, and the Mimic immediately became smitten with Ponzetti, promising not to digest the objects dropped into it if the rogue would marry it! As any sane man would, Ponzetti fled in terror at what it meant to be "loved" by a Mimic. Still wanting the jewelry, Ponzetti doesn"t want to take the chance of killing the Mimic and losing the merchandise forever, but he hopes the renowned seducer Don Pantaloni d'Oro can persuade the Mimic to give back the jewelry willingly! In return, Ponzetti will make sure the person trying to kill the elf is persuaded to cease his actions.
Be the PC once more:
Never one to back down from an amorous challenge, Don Pantaloni agrees!
5. How can any heroic gains from the results of Question 4 suddenly be undermined as new information about the true face/scheme/power of the enemy becomes known?
Be the GM first:
Story Cube: shield
Encounter: revelation & combat
Place: Outside of the wizard's tower, Northern Wilds, later that afternoon
Four hours later and deep into the northern wilds, Ponzetti leads the group to a grove where they find a wizard's tower poorly disguised as a really, really small wizard's tower. Inside the tiny tower is where the Mimic is, lounging in a library and pining away for Ponzetti. Ponzetti assures the heroes that the incantation key he will share with them will easily get them into the site. Before the quartet decide whether to trust the rogue or not, three angry lizardfolk riding even angrier giant lizards suddenly fall out of the trees, blocking their way to the tower!
Be the PCs next:
Orsini rallies everyone to concentrate their attacks on the riders. The fight is a little tougher than expected, and both Ysabel and Guglio take serious injuries in the melee, but once the lizardfolk are killed, their mounts run off upon being injured.
Be the GM once again:
Ponzetti emerges from the shadows where he had hidden once the fighting began. He gravely announces that SHE is getting more resolute in her determination to kill Don Pantaloni, and her summoning is getting more deadly. The elf must do this favor for Ponzetti before she strikes again!
6. How can the adverse results from Questions 4 and 5 be further intensified, forcing the heroes to commit to a do-or-die course of action in accordance with the heroic motivation?
Be the GM first:
Story Cube: fish
Encounter: pursuit
Place: Outside of the wizard's tower, Northern Wilds, same time
Ponzetti tells Don Pantaloni that one of the Stormcaller's female Cardinals in the League of Temples has acknowledged the petition of a Naiad wanting revenge after the elf loved her and left her. The Naiad claimed to be a direct offspring of the Stormcaller (think Poseidon, god of seas and horses), and the Cardinal soon found this claim to be true when she was suddenly imbued with great summoning powers after she accepted the fey girl's request for justice. Ponzetti learned all of this during some business dealings with one of the Cardinal's political rivals in the church. Ponzetti can use the scandalous information he knows about her to blackmail the Cardinal into leaving Don Pantaloni alone. Otherwise, her pursuit of him will never end until he is dead.
Be the PCs Next:
Sister Ysabel's religion knowledge isn't keen enough to confirm whether Ponzetti's story is completely plausible, but both she and Don Pantaloni can sense that his motives are sincere. They both tell Orsini that they believe the rogue is telling the truth. Orsini shakes his head and grumbles about what terrible things love can make people do. Begrudgingly, he gives Ponzetti the permission to send them into the tiny tower.
Be the GM once more:
Ponzetti recites the incantation key...
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